Shadows of Grief
by vivace160
Summary: After centuries of nothing but heartache, when von Krolock's life is in danger will he care enough to fight back?  Sequel to Shadows of Agony
1. Chapter 1

A/N: This story is a sequel to Shadows of Agony so if you haven't read that yet, I highly suggest you do so that this story will make more sense. Sequels of anything can be really iffy... I hope you enjoy this one :)

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><p>"Cristian where on Earth are you going?" Liliana pulled on her robe as she hurried down the stairs. "It's in the middle of the night!"<p>

"We're going to the castle. He is there and he is alone, we're certain of it." Cristian buttoned his coat then checked his satchel one last time to be sure he had all of his supplies. "We're going after him."

"Cristian please, enough with this vampire nonsense!" Cristian looked up from his satchel and glared at his wife, causing her to take a step back.

"It's not nonsense. We've been watching the castle for so long and the only one who ever came out during the day was that cripple." Cristian picked up his satchel and walked to the door with Liliana following close behind. "The cripple has been gone for years, ever since my father was a part of our group, but while we used to see others come and go during the night, for months now we haven't seen anyone."

"It doesn't mean he's a vampire. Why can't you just leave the man alone?" Liliana tried to grab Cristian's arm but he pushed her away.

"What about all the people from our village that have disappeared over the years?" He asked her. "Do you expect me to forget about them?

"You have no proof this man you're going after had anything to do with all of that. Besides, it's been months since anyone has gone missing. Surely if he was responsible there would have been more." Liliana followed Cristian outside onto the front steps and shivered in the chilly night air.

"You're just a stupid woman," he snapped. "What do you know? Shut up and get back into the house."

"Please Cristian, just come back to bed," Liliana called out but Cristian got into his car and drove away.

-.-.-.-.-

Von Krolock stared into the empty fireplace and absentmindedly stroked the cloak that was draped over his lap. She had worn it when she first showed up at his castle; it was old then but newer wear marks caused by the vampire's own hands had appeared over the years as he continued this nightly ritual.

_"I don't love you..."_

He brought the cloak up to his nose and inhaled deeply. Her scent had long ago been replaced by mustiness of the castle air but it did nothing to dull the memory of how sweet she had smelled to him. Closing his eyes, he rested his head against the back of the chair and sighed. Thirty years was nothing to a vampire, but these had been the longest thirty years Von Krolock had ever lived through.

_"Let her go! Let her go, Papa! Let her go!"_

He closed his eyes and the image of Anneliese's dead body within his arms flashed through his mind. Why couldn't he have just let her go? He leaned forward, resting his head on her cloak which was now bunched up on his lap, and cried.

-.-.-.-.-

"You're absolutely positive he's in there alone?" Ivan stared up at the gloomy castle. It had always seemed dark and creepy but it had looked cared for when he was a child. Over the years it had fallen into a state of disrepair; broken windows had merely been boarded up, the detailed ornamentation on the walls and along the edge of the roof was either chipping away or had fallen off completely, and ivy-which at this time of the year was dry and leafless-was growing over the walls and even over some of the windows.

"I'm certain of it." Cristian handed each of his two friends a cross and a little glass vial of water he had had blessed by a local priest. "No one has come out of there in almost six months now." He reached into his satchel one last time and pulled out an iron stake.

"I thought you said we weren't going to kill him," Ivan said.

"_Yet. _He said we aren't going to kill him _yet_," Peter reminded him.

"Then what is the stake for?"

"It's just a precaution." Cristian started walking toward the castle and Ivan and Peter followed close behind. "I'd rather keep him alive but even with three of us against one of him... well, better to be safe than sorry."

"How are we going to get in?" Peter asked when they reached the castle. "Should we try the back?"

"Let's just break one of the windows," Ivan suggested and Peter laughed.

"That's real smart," he teased. "If you toss a rock through a window the sound of the glass breaking will echo through every single hallway. He'll hear us and we'll all be dead before we even make it inside."

"Why don't we just try the obvious first?" Cristian said as he reached for the door. This time Ivan laughed.

"Do you really think he would just-" Ivan went silent when the door handle turned easily in Cristian's hand. He gave the door a push and it swung open.

"Well, this shouldn't be too hard," Peter muttered. "This vampire must have a death wish."

"Or he's expecting us." Cristian stuck his head inside to make sure no one was there then motioned for his friends to follow. They switched on their flashlights as they entered the foyer, swinging the beams of light all around the room to take in their surroundings. The marble floor was dull, there was a thick layer of dust on every flat surface and there were cobwebs hanging everywhere. "You..." Cristian pointed his flashlight at Ivan. "Go through that door. And you," he pointed at Peter, "go in there." They looked in each room on the first floor to find it empty so they made their way up stairs, checking each door on each floor until they reached the top.

"There!" Ivan whispered. The other two men looked in the direction he was pointing to see a door half open at the end of the hall. A soft light was flickering inside the room. They crept slowly down the hallway and once in front of the room, Ivan carefully looked inside. The room was lit by a few candles and out of all the rooms they had seen it was the only room that looked inhabitable. In the middle of the wall directly opposite from where Ivan stood in the doorway was a large fireplace and in front of it stood a tattered wing-back chair. From his angle all he could see of its occupant was a pale, thin hand resting on the armrest. He pushed the door open carefully and then three men stepped inside.

-.-.-.-.-

"Anneliese..." Leaning over his lap, Von Krolock held the soft fabric of her cloak against his cheek and sighed. "I'm so sorry," he whispered. "I should have let y-" Suddenly Von Krolock was struck against the back of his head, the force of the blow pushing him off his chair and onto the floor where he landed with a grunt. He touched his head and when he felt the blood he tried to roll over but was overcome with a burning pain. He looked up to find three men standing around him. He tried to say something but before he could get the words out, one of the men sprinkled drops of water over his face and he screamed as each little drop seared into his flesh.

"Go on, put the chains on him!" The man holding the vial of water said to the others. One of them tried to grab Von Krolock's hand but Von Krolock quickly rolled onto his side and swung his fist at him, making contact with his jaw. The man fell to the floor and Von Krolock tried to get up but another splash of holy water hit his neck and he collapsed back to the floor.

"Get out of my home or I'll kill you!" Von Krolock shouted as he clutched his burning skin. He reached for one of their legs but he was hit on the head by something hard that burned so badly it tore a layer of skin right off. They continued to pour the holy water over him, kicking him as they emptied their bottles until he had curled into a tight ball in an effort to protect himself. He caught sight of Anneliese's cloak and tried to grab it to cover himself but one of the men snatched it away from him. The instant the burning drops of water ceased, Von Krolock jumped to his feet and lunged toward the man but was stopped when he pulled out a cross and held it before him. Von Krolock backed away, shielding his eyes with his hands and hissed. The other two men held out their own crosses and within moments the three of them had Von Krolock backed into a corner.

"What do you want from me?" Von Krolock shouted hoarsely. "I've done nothing to you! Get out!"

"Ivan, get the chains on him." Ivan reached for Von Krolock's arm and the vampire moved to bite him but pulled away when the other two men pushed their crosses dangerously close to his body. "Go on Ivan, do it." Ivan tried to grab Von Krolock again and once again Von Krolock tried to bite him. The men pressed the crosses against his chest and Von Krolock groaned loudly as he was forced down to the floor. They eventually pulled away from him but before Von Krolock could stand again, something crashed against the side of his head and everything went black.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Thank you for the reviews :) Yes, this story has a different feel to it compared to Shadows of Agony, but I hope you still enjoy it. S.: I don't mind at all if you want to translate the stories. The more people who can enjoy them, the better :)

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><p>He didn't know how long he was out but by the time Von Krolock opened his eyes again he was lying on the floor in the back seat of a car. He tried to move but found iron shackles had been placed around his wrists and ankles. Two of the men were sitting up front but one was sitting in the back with him. "Where are you taking me?" Von Krolock growled at him. Ivan looked down at him and Von Krolock's eyes widened with the shock of recognition. "You..." He hissed.<p>

"Shut up back there!" A voice from the front shouted.

"Tell me where you are taking me." Ivan glared at him.

"Be quiet," he snapped.

"Where are you t-"

"I said be quiet!"

"I swear to you," Von Krolock said as he struggled against the shackles, "when I get out of here I'm going to-" Before he could get the rest of the words out, Ivan swung his cross at Von Krolock's head and he passed out again.

-.-.-.-.-

Von Krolock drifted in and out of consciousness as he was dragged from the car and into a small barn. When he was fully awake he found chains had been attached to his shackles and were bolted to the floor. He tried to grab the chains in an effort to pull them out from the floor but he quickly dropped them, hissing as the silver plating burned his fingers. He wanted to stand but could barely even move as if all his energy had been sapped from his body and he realized why when a lantern was lit and he got a good look at his surroundings. He was lying on the cement floor, stripped of everything but his pants, in a corner farthest from the door. The windows were boarded shut and every wall was lined with crosses of various sizes.

"Where am I?" He rasped when the three men approached. "Who are you? What do you want from me?"

"Where you are is none of your concern," one of the men said as he stepped forward. "My name is Cristian. This is Peter and this is Ivan. What we want from you is information. We want you to tell us where the other vampires are." Von Krolock lowered his head back to the floor and closed his eyes.

"There are no others," he sighed. "They're all gone."

-.-.-.-.-

"Father, it's not safe here any longer." Herbert spoke softly as he knelt beside his father's chair. "There are men who have been watching us for a while. Eventually they're going to come for us and now that it's just the three of us-"

"I can't go..." Von Krolock caressed a frayed ribbon that was threatening to fall off of Anneliese's cloak. "I can't leave her here alone."

"She's gone," Herbert said. "She's been gone for nearly thirty years and she's not coming back. It won't make a difference if you're here or not."

"I know she's gone," Von Krolock snapped as he glared at his son. "I wake up to that fact every single night. I don't need you to remind me." He turned his attention back to her cloak and touched the small metal clasp. "Take Breda and go somewhere safe. I can't leave Anneliese alone."

"You need to let her go, Father. When those men come to the castle they'll find her and they'll give her a proper burial. Please... come with us." Von Krolock gathered the cloak into his arms and held it against his chest.

"Please, Herbert," he whispered, "take Breda and go. Just leave me be."

"They'll kill you if they find you."

"Let them," Von Krolock said with a shrug. "I don't care anymore."

-.-.-.-.-

"Answer me!" Cristian yelled as he kicked Von Krolock in the stomach. "Where have they gone?"

"I don't..." Von Krolock gasped for air. "Know..." Peter swung a metal pipe and Von Krolock cried out when it hit his lower back.

"Where are they?" He shouted and he swung the pipe again. hitting him across his shoulder blades.

"I don't know!" Von Krolock groaned. He tried to roll away from their blows but he only succeeded in rolling onto the silver plated chains and he burned his arms and stomach. Cristian forced him over onto his back with his foot and held an iron stake out in front of him.

"Maybe this will jog your memory. Where are they?" Von Krolock closed his eyes and shook his head slowly. "I'll kill you if you don't tell us," Cristian warned. "I'll pound this right through your heart. Tell me where they are."

"I don't care what you do," Von Krolock sighed, his eyes still closed. "Go ahead and kill me."

"Cristian," Peter whispered, "he's not going to tell us..."

"Come on, let's just kill the bastard!" Ivan picked up a fresh bottle of holy water and sprayed it over Von Krolock's bare chest, smiling at the vampire as he writhed in agony.

"No!" Cristian shouted. "Maybe this will get him to talk. Have a look, Von Krolock. Does this lovely little item belong to you?" Von Krolock looked over at Cristian and a feeling of panic arose within him when he saw the man holding Anneliese's cloak.

"Give that back to me," he hissed. "How dare you touch that! Give it back to me!" He tried to crawl over to Cristian but he didn't get far before he reached the end of his chains and the shackles pinched his wrists and ankles painfully. "Give that... What are you doing?" Cristian tossed the cloak into a metal bin and lit a match.

"Tell us where they are, Von Krolock." He held the match over the bin. "If you tell us where the other vampires are I'll give the cloak back to you." Von Krolock shook his head.

"I can't..." He whispered.

"Tell me, God damn it!"

"I will tell you nothing!"

"Fine," Cristian sniffed. He dropped the match into the bin and Von Krolock cried out, watching helplessly as the beloved garment was overcome by the flames. "Now is there anything you would care to tell us?" Von Krolock clenched his jaw and glared up at Cristian.

"Fuck you," he growled. As soon as the words left his mouth Cristian kicked him in the jaw and he fell over onto his back. Cristian walked over to the vampire and leaned over him. "Just kill me," Von Krolock gasped. "I'm not going to tell you a God damn thing."

"You'd like that, wouldn't you? You _want_ me to kill you," Cristian sneered. "But I won't. I'm going to keep you here until you talk and trust me..." He held a silver blade in front of Von Krolock's face. "You _will_ talk."

-.-.-.-.-

"So did you find your vampire last night?" Liliana asked when Cristian entered the kitchen.

"What I do is none of your business," he said as he pulled a bottle of milk from the icebox and sat down at the table.

"I will never understand," she sighed as she slowly stirred the eggs in the pan, "how a grown man can believe in such things as vampires. Your father-"

"My father was a good man!"

"I am just saying that he shouldn't have filled your head with such nonsense while you were growing up. The stories were bad enough but then to start taking you and your friends out to go _vampire hunting_... I'm sorry but it all seems so silly and childish." Liliana placed a spoonful of scrambled eggs and a few strips of bacon on Cristian's plate then did the same for herself and sat down across from him at the table.

"It's not at all silly and childish," Cristian said. "It's common sense, or don't you have any of that?"

"Cristian, that's not fair..."

"All of the people that have gone missing-"

"People go missing all the time. It doesn't mean they were killed by vampires." Liliana poked at her breakfast with her fork having suddenly lost her appetite. She was tired of having this conversation over and over again.

"People don't go missing at the rate they have from this village and the two others closest to that castle," he explained to her.

"But as I said last night, no one has gone missing for months now. Surely if the man you say lives there was a vampire he'd have starved to death by now." Liliana smiled in an effort to lighten the mood but Cristian glared at her.

"He is a vampire. I have all the proof I need."

"You didn't do anything to him last night, did you Cristian? Please... promise me you will leave him be. The last thing we need is for you to be arrested for trespassing or harassment or, God forbid, something worse."

"I have to go or I'll be late for work." Cristian pushed his chair back from the table and stood up. "Listen... stay out of the barn. Peter, Ivan and I are using it for our work and we don't need you messing around with our things, understand?"

"I understand," Liliana said. "What about your breakfast? Aren't you going to eat?" Cristian looked down at his plate and scowled.

"The eggs are runny and the bacon is burnt. You're lucky you're as pretty as you are otherwise I'd have no reason to keep you around," he said with a laugh. "I'll be back before dinner." He gave his wife a quick kiss on her head then left the house, leaving her alone at the table trying to keep herself from crying.


	3. Chapter 3

"What are they doing here?" Liliana asked Cristian when she saw Peter and Ivan letting themselves in the front door.

"We have work to do out back," Cristian replied. He quickly ate the last few bites of his dinner and stood up to greet his friends as they entered the kitchen.

"But the other day you said you would take me to see a movie tonight." She got up and walked over to her husband. "Can't you do this later?"

"No, I can't do this later," he said. He moved toward the back door but Liliana grabbed his arm.

"Please Cristian, you promised. I haven't been out in so l-" Cristian pushed Liliana away causing her to let go of his arm and stumble back and when she bumped into the table, the bottle of milk slid off and crashed to the floor.

"Clean that up," he snapped at her. "And don't come out to the barn pestering us for anything." The men left the house and Liliana got to work on cleaning up the milk.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Ivan asked as they approached the barn. "Keeping him here, I mean. Won't your wife find him? What if he bites her?"

"I told her to stay away from it," Cristian said. "If she knows what's good for her she'll do as I say. If she gets in and he bites her, I'll kill them both myself." He unlocked the barn and the three of them went inside, locking the door behind them. "Oh good, you're awake!" He exclaimed when he saw Von Krolock sitting up and leaning against the wall. He knelt down, being sure to stay just out of the vampire's reach, and looked him over. He was covered in bruises where they had kicked and beaten him and red welts had formed where he had been burned by the silver chains and holy water. There were small cuts on his chest surrounded by similar welts caused by the silver razor. "You look like shit," he said with a soft chuckle. "I bet you could use something to eat. Are you hungry?" He watched with amusement as Von Krolock's blank stare began to change. "You must be famished. I bet you'd like to eat me, wouldn't you." When Cristian noticed Von Krolock's muscles tense his smile broadened. "You should give Peter a try."

"Hey! Wait a minute!" Peter stepped forward and glared down at Cristian but Cristian just laughed.

"He drinks so much of this stuff," he said as he gestured to the bottle in Peter's hand, "that I think he must have whiskey running through his veins. Think of it as a marinade." He winked at Von Krolock but the vampire just stared at him. "Here..." He threw something at Von Krolock that hit his chest and fell into his lap and the vampire looked down to find a dead cat.

"I will not eat this," Von Krolock growled.

"Well, that is completely up to you." Cristian stood up to stretch his legs and walked over to a nearby table outside of Von Krolock's view. "But the next time I feed you won't be until twenty-four hours from now and if you don't eat what I have generously provided for you this evening, I might be offended and not bring you anything else." When Cristian stepped away from the table and returned to stand in front of Von Krolock he was holding a wooden rod in one hand and a whip in the other. He handed the rod to Ivan and Peter pulled out a flask from his breast pocket.

"Water," he said as he held it out for Von Krolock to see. "Had it blessed on the way over." All three men laughed but Von Krolock just stared at them.

"I'm going to ask you once, and _only_ once," Cristian said as he took a few steps toward Von Krolock. He held the whip so tightly that his knuckles had turned white. "Where are the other vampires?" Von Krolock closed his eyes and took a deep breath, hoping this time they would kill him.

"I will never tell you."

-.-.-.-.-

"Father?" Von Krolock looked up to find Herbert and Breda beside his coffin. At least thirty years ago it had been his coffin but after he had killed Anneliese he had sealed her in it. Not wanting to leave her there alone, he ordered Herbert to sleep in his bedroom and since then Von Krolock had slept in Herbert's coffin. Both Herbert and Breda would take turns sitting with him as he mourned over Anneliese's coffin every night; that is, until the smell became too strong for them. The smell of a decaying vampire was barely noticeable to other vampires but the smell of a fully dead corpse as it rotted away was almost unbearable, yet it didn't seem to affect Von Krolock. Day after day he slept in the coffin beside hers and night after night he sat in a chair holding her cloak and thinking about her, sometimes even talking to her. Eventually the smell had gone away but Herbert and Breda rarely came down to sit with him after that.

"Breda and I are leaving now, Father," Herbert said. "Please change your mind and come with us." Von Krolock sighed and looked at the coffin.

"I've already told you I can't leave her."

"But you can't even take care of yourself." Herbert knelt down in front of his father and held his hands in his own. "There will be no one here to help you. You're in no shape to go out on your own and even if you did manage to lure someone back here, I don't think you have it in you to bite them... not after all these years of Breda draining them for you."

"There's the stored blood," Von Krolock reminded him, never taking his eyes off Anneliese's coffin.

"That will last a few months. Then what will you do? Assuming those men don't come to the castle before that happens..."

"Either I'll starve or they'll kill me," Von Krolock shrugged.

"Oh Papa, just stop this!" Herbert released his father's hands and stood up.

"What do you want from me, Herbert?" Von Krolock shouted. "What is it you want me to do?"

"Let her go! I want you to move on! I want you to stop sitting here all night as if you're as dead as she is!" Herbert snatched the cloak from his father and threw it on the ground. "The way you sit here with that thing every night... it's sick, Papa! I don't know why you can't just let her go!"

"I loved her," Von Krolock said softly. "She loved me..."

"She didn't love you! She was afraid of you!" Von Krolock rose from his chair and before Herbert could say another word, the older vampire hit him so hard he stumbled back into Breda.

"There just wasn't enough time!" Von Krolock shouted. "If she had just stayed and given me more time..." His voice began to tremble and he collapsed back into his chair. "If she had stayed she would have seen she didn't have to be afraid of me. I loved her and she loved me. I can't leave her."

"Breda and I love you too, Papa." Von Krolock looked up at his son and sister to find they both had tears in their eyes. Leaning forward slightly in his chair, he opened his arms to them; they knelt on either side of his chair and he hugged them tightly.

"I love you too," he whispered. "That's why you need to leave here without me. I've been nothing but a burden to you all these years and if I go with you now, I'll just slow you down."

"Papa..."

"No more, Herbert." Von Krolock released Herbert and Breda so he could look at them both. "This is my decision to make and mine alone. Nothing you can say will change my mind. I'm tired... very, very tired and I can't do this any longer. Just promise me you will always take care of each other better than I ever did, alright?"

"You always did take good care of us, Papa," Herbert whispered against his father's chest as he and Breda embraced Von Krolock one last time.

-.-.-.-.-

Von Krolock lay on the cold cement floor curled in a tight ball until he heard the three mean leave and the door lock behind them. Once he was sure they weren't coming back he stretched out and rolled onto his stomach. His back burned furiously from the lashes he had received from Cristian's whip but he tried to ignore the pain. Resting his head on his folded arms he closed his eyes and tried to picture the way Anneliese had looked sleeping peacefully beside him in his bed the night they had made love.

"You cast me aside a long time ago, Lord," he whispered, "and I do not deserve Your kindness, but please... accept my suffering for Anneliese. She..." Von Krolock groaned loudly and his body tensed up with pain. All the wounds that Cristian and his friends inflicted upon him could never be worse than the agony a vampire felt when he was starving. During the months since Herbert and Breda had left, he had been so caught up in his own misery that he would often go days without eating and now with all the trauma he had suffered he realized just how long it had been since the last time he had eaten.

Opening his eyes he saw the dead cat a few feet away from him. He never imagined that he would be put in such a degrading position that he would be forced to feed upon dead animals. He considered trying to just ignore the pain but there was no telling how long he was going to be kept in the barn and tortured. Cristian and his friends were causing him enough agony; he needed to do whatever he had to to ease himself of the pain his own body was causing him.

It was a struggle but he forced himself onto his hands and knees and slowly crawled over to the cat. He picked it up and brought its neck to his mouth but quickly pulled it away as the stench of it overpowered him. He had wondered if Cristian stole some family's pet and killed it but it smelled so horrible he knew it had to have been dead for a few days. He probably found it lying dead on the side of the road.

He stared at the cat for a while, running his fingers through its silky black fur. It had been so long since he had petted an animal; whenever he came near one they'd growl and run away, if they didn't try to attack him first. Turning the stiff body over, he grimaced when he saw the gaping wound on its side. Not only was it filled with dirt but it was also filled with maggots. He brushed the little white worms away then brought the cat's neck up to his mouth again. He held his breath but the smell was so strong it was almost as if he could taste it.

He opened his mouth and bit down on the cat. At first all he felt against his tongue was its dirty fur but when its blood-thick and sour after having been dead for days- began to ooze into his mouth, he gagged. He wanted to spit it out but he forced himself to swallow it. As it settled uneasily into his stomach, the pain of his hunger eased a little but long before he had his fill, he had drained all the blood from the animal. Tossing the carcass aside, he laid down again and closed his eyes and waited for sleep to come.

-.-.-.-.-

"What do you think we can get for these?" Peter asked as he examined one of the large rings. He sat with Ivan and Cristian, huddled around a table in the corner of the tavern.

"More than all three of us earn in a single year, I bet." Ivan turned one of the rings slowly, watching the way the lights reflected off the sapphire and diamonds. "Where are we taking them?"

"Timisoara," Cristian said. "If we leave first thing in the morning we can be back by nightfall."

"What will we do with the money?" Ivan asked.

"Give it to charity," Peter mumbled into his glass and all three of them laughed.

"We should split it four ways," Cristian suggested. "A share for each of us and the rest we can put toward new equipment."

"I'm going to pay off my parents' mortgage," Ivan said. "It's the least I can do for them after all they've done for me. What about you guys?"

"I'm going to get drunk," Peter said with a hiccup.

"You're always drunk," Ivan pointed out. Peter just smiled and opened another beer. "What about you Cris? Are you going to buy Liliana something nice?"

"Yeah, a one way train ticket out of the country," Peter said, making Cristian chuckle.

"No, she won't be seeing any of it." Cristian told them. "I haven't thought of what I could use it for though. For now I'll set it aside in a separate account at the bank."

"Alright boys." Cristian quickly swept the rings back into their bag when the waitress walked by. "It's closing time." They stood up, paid their bill and left the tavern together making their plans for the following day as they walked home. Eventually they parted ways and when Cristian reached his home, he stumbled inside and up the stairs and into bed, waking up his wife.

"Please Cristian," she groaned, rolling over to face away from him. "Not tonight. You're drunk."

"Come on honey, I'll be quick..." Cristian slid his hands under Liliana's nightgown and tugged at her underwear as he kissed the side of her neck.

"No, I'm not in the mood tonight. Stop it..." She tried to push him away but he forced her onto her back and placed himself firmly on top of her.

"It's your duty," he said, his voice slurred from the alcohol. "You said you'd honor and obey me." He pulled her underwear off and quickly fumbled with his own pants. Forcing her legs apart, he pushed himself inside her and she bit down on her lip to suppress a cry. As he roughly moved against her, she closed her eyes and prayed it would end soon


	4. Chapter 4

Von Krolock was awoken by a sharp kick against his ribs and when he looked up he found Cristian standing over him. "Ready to tell me where they are?"

"Fuck you," Von Krolock muttered, earning another kick.

"Hold him down," Cristian ordered. Peter grabbed hold of the shackles at Von Krolock's ankles. Ivan tried to grab the ones holding his wrists but Von Krolock nipped at him, scraping the man's hand with one of his fangs.

"He bit me!" Ivan shouted as he held his hand protectively against his chest. "That fucking thing bit me!" Von Krolock laughed as he watched Ivan panic. "You think it's funny? Laugh at this you little shit!" Ivan kicked Von Krolock hard in his side causing him to roll over. Von Krolock closed his eyes and braced himself for another kick but it never came. Instead, he felt something against his face. Opening his eyes he found a leather dog muzzle was being placed over his mouth.

"You won't be biting anyone now, will you?" Cristian whispered as he buckled the straps of the muzzle behind the vampire's head. Von Krolock immediately tried to reach back to undo them but Cristian grabbed his wrists and held them down while Peter connected both sets of shackles with a chain to restrict Von Krolock's movements. "Tell me where the other vampires are." Von Krolock shook his head.

"I will not tell you," he said to them. He hissed when he felt the drops of holy water burning his skin again.

"If you tell us I can assure you a quick painless death," Cristian said, "but if you continue to protect them..." He allowed a few more drops of the water to fall on Von Krolock's stomach and he watched the small tendrils of smoke rise from the sizzling skin.

"Do whatever you want to me. I will never tell you where they are." Cristian pushed Von Krolock over, forcing him onto his stomach and Von Krolock screamed as a cross was placed over his back, burning into the welts left by Cristian's whip the night before.

"We'll be gone for the day," Cristian said when he finally pulled the cross away. "I hope you enjoyed your meal last night. We won't be around to feed you again until tomorrow." Von Krolock lay motionless on his stomach; his back burned horribly but it wasn't until he saw the three men leave that he allowed himself to finally pass out from the pain.

-.-.-.-.-

Liliana watched through the kitchen window as her husband and his friends left the barn and walked to his car. They seemed distracted and she couldn't help but notice the padlock left hanging unlocked. She never went into the barn even though Cristian had never once before told her to stay out of it and she couldn't help but wonder what he was hiding from her now. She watched as they got in the car and drove away and once she was sure they were gone, she left the house and went over to the barn.

Pulling the door open, she stuck her head inside and listened but she could hear nothing. With the bit of light provided by the rising sun Liliana could see only a little of the inside of the barn but deep into the other side was pitch black as Cristian had boarded up the windows. She lit a lantern and stepped inside and gasped when she saw the large number of crosses that lined the walls. "He's gone mad," she whispered. She moved a little further and stopped when she came across a table. She held the lantern over it to get a better look and cringed when she saw an assortment of razors, branding irons and other objects.

"What is he-" Liliana stopped when she heard something move in the next room. She walked through the doorway and stared in horror at the unconscious man who lay on the floor in the middle of the small room. He was chained to the floor, a muzzle had been placed on his head and his back was covered in wounds. She hung the lantern on a hook and ran over to the man. "Sir? Are you alright?" She touched his shoulder and gasped at the coldness of his skin.

"Wake up... Please wake up..." She gave him a gentle shove and he moaned. When she brushed his long hair away from his face his eyes opened half way. "Sir...?" His eyes moved a little and when they finally rested on her face, he tried to pull away from her. He rolled onto his side and she took in the sight of the wounds on his face, neck and torso. "What have they done to you?" She gasped. She reached for him but he pushed himself into a sitting position and moved further away from her. "I won't hurt you," she said gently as she crawled closer to him. "I want to help you. Let me take the muzzle off."

He remained still as she approached him and she could feel his eyes on her as she worked to undo the buckles behind his head. Once they were free, she dropped the device on the floor and sat back to look at him. "My husband did this to you," she said softly but he didn't respond. "You're from the castle just outside the village aren't you?" He nodded. "I am terribly sorry for what he's done." She looked at the shackles around his wrists and ankles; picking up the heavy chain, she tugged against the bolt screwed into the floor but it wouldn't budge. "I never imagined he would go this far with those stupid theories of his. Vampires, I mean," she added when she saw the look of confusion on his face. "He swore you were a vampire." Liliana looked down at the floor, her embarrassment causing her to laugh a little. "I know how insane that sounds... a grown man still believing in fairy tales." She gave the chain another tug and sighed. "I will have to have someone come and cut you out of these things. Is there something I can get you in the meantime?"

"I could use something to eat," he replied in a raspy voice.

"I have some oatmeal on the stove," she told him. "Would you like a bowl of that? Or maybe some eggs?" He shook his head slowly and Liliana shivered when one of his cold hands wrapped around her wrist. "There's chicken leftover from dinner last night. I can... what are you doing?" He pulled on her arm forcing her to move closer to him.

"Eating," he growled. He leaned in toward her neck but Liliana swung her free hand and hit him where the layer of skin had been pulled away. He let out a yelp and when he released Liliana, she backed away quickly until she hit a wall causing one of the crosses to fall. She stared at him as he cowered on the floor, clutching the side of his head. When he finally lifted his head to look at her, she covered her mouth to stifle a scream when she saw the fangs in his mouth. He stumbled toward her on his hands and knees but she grabbed the fallen cross and held it out in front of her.

"Stay back!" She screamed, clutching the wooden symbol tightly in her hands. He fell back a little, groaning and hissing as he tried to protect himself from the cross. "You... you're a vampire," she whimpered. "No... this can't be happening. You can't be real... Stay away from me!" She thrust the cross forward a little when he looked at her and he turned away again, lying down on the floor to cover his head with his arms.

"Please stop! Take it away!" He groaned from beneath his arms.

"I tried to help you! I was going to get you out of here and you were going to kill me!" Liliana pushed herself up to her feet, keeping the cross in front of her.

"I'm sorry," he cried. "It's just been so long..."

"See? I told you I forgot to lock it!" Both Liliana and Von Krolock looked in the direction of the door when they heard Cristian's voice. "Stay here, I'm just going to run in and make sure our guest hasn't gotten into any trouble." Liliana looked down at Von Krolock who was now sitting up again. His entire body trembled and she took a step toward him but froze when he glared up at her.

"Get out," he hissed. "Get out of here now!" She replaced the cross on its nail and hurried out of the room and behind a stack of boxes, blowing out her lantern just as Cristian walked into the barn.

"Well what do we have here?" He asked as he walked into the room and hung his own lantern on the hook Liliana's had just been on moments before. "How on Earth did you manage to get that off?" He picked up the muzzle and without warning he hit Von Krolock with it, the metal wires lashing the side of his face. Liliana crept out from behind the boxes and was about to sneak out of the barn when the sight of her husband hitting the vampire caused her to stop. Cristian dropped the muzzle then kicked him in the stomach repeatedly until he lay completely limp on the floor.

Liliana clamped her hand over her mouth unable to believe what she was seeing. She knew how mean he could be but she never imagined he would be so brutal to someone so completely helpless. She wanted to stop him but she could only imagine what he'd do to her if he found her there in the barn. She watched helplessly as he raised a branding iron he had picked up from the table. "I had this made specially for you," he said. He pointed it at Von Krolock and the vampire closed his eyes against the sight of the small iron cross.

Cristian traced along the outline of Krolock's body with the branding iron keeping the cross barely an inch away from him. "Let's see. Where should I... ah yes!" He pressed the iron cross against the soft flesh of Von Krolock's side just above his hip. Liliana suddenly felt queasy but she wasn't sure whether it was the burning smell or the long guttural groans and cries coming from Von Krolock that made her feel so sick. He moved the branding iron around, burning Von Krolock's shoulder, his lower back, the back of his neck and eventually Liliana found the strength to move again and she ran out of the barn and back into the house where she couldn't hear his screams.

-.-.-.-.-

Liliana spent the rest of the day trying to keep herself busy. She found if she sat for longer than just a few minutes her mind would wander to Von Krolock. She couldn't help but feel terrible for him. She wanted to do something but she was completely helpless; Cristian had locked the door when he left and even if he hadn't, Von Krolock was chained to the floor. Now that she knew he was a vampire she was too afraid to risk having someone come to cut the chains. He had almost bitten her and if she managed to set him free, she feared he would bite her or someone else.

On the other hand, he had said he was sorry. She wouldn't put it past him to say anything at all to get her to take the cross away but she believed him when he said he hadn't eaten in a while and she couldn't help but think he wouldn't have tried to bite her if he wasn't starving. Then he had told her to get out when they heard Cristian coming. She didn't know why he should have cared. Chances are if Cristian had seen her in the barn he'd have been so angry with her that Von Krolock would have been spared the beating as she would have received it herself.

Liliana was staring through the kitchen window at the barn wishing there was something she could do to help him when Cristian stumbled into the house with his friends. Cristian tossed his jacket on the table as they walked through the kitchen and into the living room. She picked it up and as she placed it on the coat hanger she felt something in his pocket. Slipping her hand inside she found the key to the barn. She listened to the men's loud chatter in the next room for a moment to be sure no one was headed into the kitchen then she quickly pulled the key out and hid it in one of the cabinets.


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: So sorry for making you wait for this chapter. I promise to update more regularly again. Thank you all for the latest reviews!

* * *

><p>"Shit... Shit shit shit!" Liliana struggled not to smile as she watched Cristian frantically search through his coat pockets over and over again.<p>

"What's wrong?" She asked as she set their places at the table for breakfast.

"My key to the barn is missing. I swear I had it in my pocket yesterday."

"Maybe you dropped it," Liliana suggested. Cristian gave a frustrated sigh then headed for the door. "Where are you going?"

"To Peter's. He has the other key."

"But you have to leave for work soon. What about breakfast?"

"I don't have time," Cristian said. "I have something I need to take care of first."

"What is in that barn, anyway?" Cristian stopped in the doorway.

"As I've said before, it's none of your business. Don't ask me again."

"I'm only curious. You've never locked it before and-" Cristian stormed across the room and slapped Liliana so hard a bruise immediately began to show at the corner of her eye.

"Not another word about it!" He yelled. Liliana stared in stunned silence as he grabbed his coat and left. Once he was gone she cleaned up their uneaten breakfast and as she was washing the dishes she noticed Cristian and Peter go into the barn. It made her sick to think of what they were doing to the helpless man inside. She didn't care what he was; they had him so restrained there was no way he could be a threat to them to deserve such treatment. She was struggling to figure out any way at all she could help him and as she was putting the milk back in the icebox she realized exactly what she could do.

-.-.-.-.-

Nearly half an hour passed before Cristian and Peter finally left. Grabbing the key, Liliana left the kitchen with a bowl in hand and entered the barn before her nerves could get the best of her. She lit one of the lanterns and went straight into the back room. When she saw the vampire's condition she feared for a moment that they had killed him until he opened his eyes and looked at her. There were even more bruises on him than she had seen the day before and there were splatters of blood on the floor all around him. A little blood was trickling from one of his ears and more was coming from his nose.

She hung the lantern and pulled a old chair into the room; the whole time Von Krolock lay perfectly still, only his eyes moving as he watched her every move. "What are you doing?" He rasped when she sat down. "I told you to go away."

"Cristian is gone now. He won't be back for hours."

"Why are you here? What do you want from me?" Liliana furrowed her brow in confusion.

"What? Nothing... I want to help you," she said and she frowned when Von Krolock laughed dryly.

"Help me," he muttered. "You can't help me."

"Well... I can't get you out of here," she sighed, "but I brought you something." Von Krolock watched as she reached out and placed a bowl on the floor in front of him. "It probably won't help much but I was hoping it might make you a little more comfortable. It was all we had but I can get more." Von Krolock pushed himself up slowly and looked into the bowl.

"Is this..."

"Blood." Von Krolock sniffed it and crinkled his nose.

"Another dead cat I presume," he said sarcastically.

"I drained it from some steaks we had in the icebox," she explained. She frowned again at the expression on his face. "If it disgusts you so much I'll take it back." She reached for the bowl but quickly pulled back when Von Krolock flinched and tried to move away from her. "I'm sorry. I'll find you something better tomorrow but for today this is all I have," she said softly. Von Krolock pulled the bowl closer to him and forced himself to take a sip. It was cold and syrupy but it was fresh and better yet, it was clean.

"No..." He took a long sip. "It's alright. I didn't mean to react like that." He drank some more; he wanted to drink the entire bowl at once but he knew it would only make him sick. "Thank you for this..." Liliana sat quietly for a bit as she watched him slowly drink the blood.

When he set the bowl down again she asked, "Why are they doing this to you? What can they possibly want from you?"

"They want to know..." Von Krolock stopped and glared at her.

"What...?

"Why are you here?" He asked her again. "They sent you didn't they? They realized torturing me was getting them nowhere and they sent you in with this," he kicked the empty bowl away from him, "to try and get me to spill my guts to you, didn't they?"

"No, that's not it at all! Honestly I just wanted to help you. I only asked because I was curious. I'm not even supposed to be in here!" Liliana tried to stand up from the chair when she saw Von Krolock crawling toward her but before she could he grabbed hold of her legs and held her down.

"You should have listened to your husband," he growled. Liliana cringed when she saw his fangs.

"I just wanted to help," she whispered.

"Why?" He snapped. "Why would you want to help a creature like me?"

"Because I can't help but think you've done nothing to deserve what they're doing to you," Liliana said. "I've been married to Cristian for ten years and I know all too well how unfair he can be." She motioned to the bruise near her eye. "It doesn't take much to set him off and he's the type that would show up to a fist fight with a shotgun." She waited for Von Krolock to say something but he only stared at her. "I really just want to do what I can to help you. Please..." Finally Von Krolock released her legs and sat back on the floor.

"Aren't you afraid of me?" He asked.

"No more than I am of my own husband."

"I could bite you. I could turn you into a vampire or just as easily kill you."

"I know..." Liliana looked down at her hands unable to handle the way he was staring at her.

"And you're willing to take such a risk with your life?"

"Believe me, I'm not risking much," she replied with a forced laugh. She looked at Von Krolock again to find the look in his eyes had softened.

"They're keeping me here because they want to know where the others are."

"Others? You mean other vampires?" Von Krolock nodded.

"My family... They've all been gone for months now and your husband and his friends are trying to get me to tell them where they've gone." Liliana was about to ask him where they went but she stopped herself. He trusted her enough to tell her this much and she didn't want to ruin it.

"You've been alone ever since?" Von Krolock turned away from her and sighed heavily. "I'm sorry Sir, I didn't mean to pry."

"My name is Heinrich. Count Heinrich von Krolock." Liliana sat up in her chair.

"A Count! How exciting!"

"I assure you it's not," he replied with a weak chuckle. "It means nothing anymore. It hasn't in a very long time."

"My name is Liliana Moldovan." She could barely eve see the side of his face with the way his head was turned but she thought he smiled a little when she said her name. "Do you feel any better at all? I mean, the blood I gave you... did it help any?"

"It did. Thank you, Liliana. Every little bit helps."

"Is animal blood really that much worse than..." Liliana brought a hand to her neck, unable to say the words.

"It's... a last resort, you could say. It doesn't taste all that different when it's fresh but the effects it has on us are weaker."

"I can bring you something better tomorrow," Liliana said. "I can get you a live chicken or two."

"I would appreciate that." Von Krolock smiled but she couldn't help but notice the sadness in his eyes.

"You look very tired," she said to him. "I wish I could give you a pillow or a blanket but if Cris saw it..."

"It's alright Liliana. You've been very kind to me already. I think I might even be able to sleep a little more now that I've had something to eat." Von Krolock stretched out as best he could on the floor and Liliana put her chair away.

She picked up her lantern but before she left she turned to Von Krolock and said, "I will see you tomorrow." Von Krolock watched as she walked out of the room and once she was gone he closed his eyes and sighed. He hadn't intended on letting his guard down with Liliana, especially not so quickly. She was the wife of the man who had his life in his hands. He had had a chance to bite her the day before but even if she hadn't fought back he wouldn't have gone through with it. Between his current situation and the fact he hadn't bitten anyone himself ever since he killed Anneliese, he was too weak to do it. He had only done it to scare her and she certainly had been scared... yet she came back to help him. He wasn't sure if he should be so trusting of her but Anneliese had given him a taste of companionship and he longed for it more than anything else, especially now.

-.-.-.-.-

Liliana looked around the dinner table as Cristian and Ivan talked on and on about things she had little interest in. She never paid attention to their conversations before but knowing about Von Krolock she was curious to find out exactly what it is they planned on doing with him. She knew they wouldn't discuss their plans in front of her but she hoped that maybe one of them would let something slip but so far neither of them had. They were already halfway through dinner when Peter came in; he was so drunk Liliana could smell the alcohol on him as soon as he walked through the door. He slammed a bottle of champagne down on the table and fell into a chair.

"This is really expensive champagne," Liliana said as she read the label. "Where did you get this?"

"What do you mean, where did I get it? I bought it." Peter shot her an angry glare. Liliana couldn't believe him. In all the years she knew him he had never been able to hold down a job for longer than a year and he could barely afford the cheap whiskey he always bought, let alone something this extravagant.

"Where did you get the money?"

"Liliana!" Cristian snapped.

"A friend gave it to me," Peter said.

"What friend?"

"No one you know." Peter served himself a glass of the champagne and drained it quickly.

"Peter, that's enough," Cristian said in a warning tone.

"Where is he from?" Liliana asked.

"Just outside the village."

"Does anyone else think the steak is a bit dry?" Ivan asked in an attempt to change the subject. Liliana was about to ask Peter another question when Cristian interrupted her.

"Sorry, Liliana isn't much of a cook."

"It isn't my fault!" She said without thinking. "Blame it on the butcher!" Cristian slapped her and she went silent, remaining this way throughout the rest of dinner. When they were finished, the three men headed for the back door and Liliana felt sick to think of what condition they would leave Von Krolock in this time. "It's so cold out tonight," she said. "Why don't you stay in here tonight? I'll make a pot of coffee then go upstairs to read so you have your privacy." Cristian and Peter completely ignored her and left the house but Ivan remained in the kitchen with her for a moment.

"I'm sorry about what I said." Ivan stared at the floor unable to look her in the eye. "If I had known it would cause so much trouble..."

"I just wish you would all stay inside tonight," she said with a sigh as she slowly made her way around the table, collecting all the dishes.

"Why is that?" Liliana looked at Ivan, debating whether or not to tell him what she knew. When he was by himself he was so different from Peter and Cristian; he was much nicer than they were but when he was with them he was just as bad and she worried if she told him, he would end up telling Cristian.

"Like I said, it's really cold tonight. You'd be more comfortable in the house than in the barn."

"Maybe," he replied with a shrug. "But we have... things we need to take care of in the barn." Liliana was about to say something but before she could, he quickly excused himself and left the kitchen to meet up with Cristian and Peter who were already in the barn.


	6. Chapter 6

Von Krolock sat and stared at the floor. He was exhausted yet he couldn't sleep. He had slept so little in the couple days since he had been brought to the barn and what sleep he did get was poor and so broken he had lost any sense of whether it was day or night. He couldn't even remember how many days he had been there. The little bit of cow's blood Liliana had given him had been enough to settle his hunger pains and a few minor scrapes had already healed but Cristian, Peter and Ivan had done so much damage that his entire body ached constantly. His back still burned from the whipping, the burned cuts on his chest from the silver blade were still very tender and he was certain some of his ribs had been fractured.

He knew he should want to find a way to escape but all the time he spent awake his mind kept wandering to Anneliese. If he made it out alive it would only be to return to a life he had hated, a life he had avoided for thirty years causing his sister and son to take care of him as if he were a helpless child. Instead of wanting to escape, he was wishing they would take their cruelty too far and finally kill him.

"Have we changed our mind this evening?" Von Krolock looked up to find Cristian and his friends standing in the doorway. "Are you going to tell us now where the other vampires are?"

"No," was all he said. The three men advanced upon him, one holding the branding iron, one holding the whip and another holding the silver razor. Von Krolock covered his head with his arms and closed his eyes.

-.-.-.-.-

"Papa! Papa!" Herbert squealed as he ran down the stairs. Von Krolock swept his little boy into his arms and hugged him tightly. "I am so glad you are home, Papa!" Herbert's voice was muffled by Von Krolock's cloak. "I have missed you terribly!"

"I was only gone for two days," Von Krolock chuckled. He gave his son another squeeze before setting him back down on his feet. He handed the butler his cloak then knelt down so he was eye to eye with his son. "Were you a good boy for Nanny Elsa?"

"Yes, Papa." Dimples formed in Herbert's cheeks as he smiled widely.

"Promise?" Von Krolock leaned forward and tilted his head down slightly. Immediately Herbert did the same so their foreheads were touching and he kissed the tip of his father's nose.

"I promise," he whispered with a giggle.

"Good." Von Krolock kissed one of Herbert's chubby cheeks then stood up to retrieve his bag. "I've brought you a surprise." Herbert stood beside Von Krolock to try and look inside the bag but even on his toes his head barely reached above his father's hips.

"What is it? What did you bring me?" He asked.

"I brought you a sack of peas."

"Peeeaass?" Herbert crinkled his nose and stuck out his tongue. "I hate peas!" Von Krolock bit the inside of his mouth to keep from smiling.

"What do you mean you don't like peas? I thought you loved peas!"

"Peas are yucky," Herbert said with a frown.

"Oh dear," Von Krolock sighed. "Well, if you don't like peas then I guess the only thing I have here to give you is..." He paused for a moment and watched as Herbert began to grow anxious, hopping from one foot to the other.

"Come on, Papa! What is it?"

"Well..." He looked down at the object in the bag. "I am not sure you will like it. I was going to give it to Nanny Elsa because I thought you would have been happy with the peas..."

"Papaaaaa!" Herbert whined and pulled on Von Krolock's waistcoat. Von Krolock pulled the present from the bag and held it out before the child. Herbert's eyes grew so large at the sight of the bag of marbles it seemed they took up half of the boy's small face and Von Krolock couldn't keep from smiling. Herbert threw his arms around Von Krolock's legs and hugged him. "I love them, Papa! They are perfect! Thank you!"

"You're welcome." Von Krolock combed his fingers through Herbert's golden blonde hair. "Why don't you take these to the playroom and try them out?"

"Can you play with me? Please?" Herbert asked, staring up at his father. Von Krolock sighed as he looked over at his satchel filled with documents that needed to be read and signed but when he looked down at Herbert again he smiled.

"Of course I will play with you." Taking the boy's small hand in his they walked through the castle up to Herbert's playroom. Von Krolock removed his jacket and waistcoat and after removing his shoes, he sat down on the floor where Herbert had already dumped the entire bag of marbles.

"Look at this one, Papa. Look how pretty it is." Herbert held a marble against the sunlight that flooded in through one of the high arched windows.

"Yes, that is very pretty. Can you tell me what color it is?"

"Red. And this one," Herbert dropped the red marble and picked up another one, letting the sunlight shine through it, "is green."

"That is right," Von Krolock said gently. He held up one of the marbles himself and asked, "What color is this?" Herbert looked at it closely.

"Yellow. That was Mama's favorite color, isn't that what you said, Papa?" Von Krolock smiled sadly.

"Yes it was. Yellow, just like the color of your hair." He ruffled Herbert's hair and the boy giggled.

"What is your favorite color?" Herbert asked. Von Krolock skimmed his fingers over the little balls of glass until he found the right one. He held it up and Herbert smiled. "Blue! That is my favorite color too, then!"

"It is, is it?"

"Yes," Herbert said as he climbed into his father's lap. "Since it is your favorite color it is my favorite color as well because I want to be just like you." Von Krolock wrapped his arms around him and held him tightly, resting his cheek on the top of his head. "I am so happy you are home again. I love you, Papa," the child whispered.

"And I love you, Herbert," Von Krolock whispered back.

-.-.-.-.-

"Is he dead?" Von Krolock's eyes fluttered open at the sound of Peter's voice. A few tears slipped from his eyes as he became aware of the fact he was not sitting with his son in his sunlit playroom, but was chained up in the dark, cold barn being whipped and burned.

"No. I'm pretty sure you just knocked him out," Ivan said. Von Krolock realized they hadn't seen him open his eyes so he closed them again and remained still.

"Von Krolock!" Cristian shouted. He gave the vampire a firm nudge with his foot but Von Krolock didn't move. "Well I guess that is it for tonight. Come on, let's get out of here." Von Krolock heard something drop beside his head but he waited until he was sure the men were gone. When he finally opened his eyes he saw that one of them had left a few dad rats for him to feed on.

He tried to sit up but his vision grew dark and the room began to spin so he lay down again and waited for the dizziness to pass. When it did he pushed himself up again, slower this time, until he was sitting up. He picked up the rats which looked to have been crushed by the strong jaw of a rat trap. He thought of the dead cat and wasn't sure if he could stomach the rats but he didn't know if Liliana was going to bring him more to eat or not. She had told him she would but how could he know if he could trust her? He only had himself to rely on. He bit down into one of the rats and drained it quickly of its sour blood before moving onto the others


	7. Chapter 7

The next morning Liliana did everything in her power to slow Cristian down as he got ready for work. She didn't want a repeat of yesterday. She wanted him to not have enough time to go into the barn before he left for work so when he ran out of the house and straight to the car, cursing at her the whole way, she couldn't help but smile as she watched him drive away. As soon as he was gone she threw on an old shirt, overalls and a pair of boots. With a cage in hand she crept into the neighbor's yard and when she saw their truck was gone, she hurried over to their chicken coop. Once she had managed to stuff four of the birds into the cage, she hurried back onto her property and brought them to the shed they used to prepare the animals Cristian brought home from his hunting trips.

-.-.-.-.-

"Heinrich?" Von Krolock jerked awake when he felt a warm hand on his bare shoulder. Out of instinct he grabbed their wrist and almost bit down before he realized it was Liliana.

"I'm sorry," he whispered as he quickly released her arm.

"It was my fault," she said. "I don't have much experience dealing with vampires. It never occurred to me that I shouldn't sneak up on one." She smiled to show him she was joking. One corner of Von Krolock's mouth rose slightly but before she could see if it turned into a smile or not, he looked down at the floor.

"No, it's not usually a good idea," he replied. Liliana took note of a hint of humor hidden in the tiredness of his voice.

"I brought you more to eat." Liliana put a large bowl into Von Krolock's hands. "It's chicken this time. And it's fresh." Von Krolock took a sip and sighed as the warm liquid filled his mouth. As he slowly drank the blood, Liliana sat down on the floor beside him.

"What are you doing?" He asked.

"I'm sitting down."

"Why...?"

"Because I'm tired of standing." Liliana smiled but when she saw the way he was looking at her, the smile quickly disappeared.

"Why are you sitting here next to me?"

"I'm sorry. I didn't realize it would be a problem," she said. She tried to stand but Von Krolock grabbed her shoulder.

"No, please stay." She remained sitting beside him and watched quietly as he drank from the bowl she had brought for him. "Why are you staring at me like that?" He asked between sips.

"You're not ugly at all," she said and he stared at her for a moment.

"What is that supposed to mean?" He asked.

"Well, you look absolutely nothing like Nosferatu."

"Nosferatu?"

"Yes," Liliana said with a nod. "He's this awful looking vampire... no hair, really creepy looking, and he has these two terribly long fangs and these insanely long fingers and- What?"

"Where is this other vampire? I've never heard of him..."

"Oh! No," she laughed. "He isn't real. He's a character in a movie from a few years ago." Von Krolock finished his meal and set the bowl down on the floor.

"Movie? What is a movie?" He asked.

"You've never heard of a movie?" Von Krolock shook his head. "They're pictures that are projected onto a large screen but the people in the pictures move."

"Moving pictures?" Von Krolock said with a chuckle. "I find it hard to believe."

"Well I find it hard to believe I'm sitting beside a vampire. Are you going to bite me?" She asked, looking him straight in the eye.

"Are you afraid I'm going to?"

"A little. But you seem so... nice." Von Krolock rested his head against the wall and sighed.

"I'm not nice, Liliana. I'm just a miserable old man."

"Why are you so miserable?" Liliana asked. "Is it because you lost your family?"

"Liliana..." She could tell by the sound of Von Krolock's voice that he was growing irritated with her.

"I'm sorry. Cristian says I talk too much." She forced a laugh but Von Krolock didn't smile.

"I just don't want to discuss my family," he told her.

"You still don't trust me, do you?"

"They are all I have. I have to protect them."

"Does that mean you know where they are?" Von Krolock glanced at her then looked down at his hands.

"Yes, I know precisely where they are." He waited for her to ask him where they were but she never did. Instead she reached over and placed her hand over one of the shackles on his wrists.

"I couldn't find bolt cutters and I'm afraid if I ask someone for help Cris will find out." She carefully slid the iron cuff up to reveal the raw, bruised skin beneath it. "These wounds should be cleaned." Liliana stood and Von Krolock watched as she crossed the room and picked up a bucket he hadn't noticed earlier. She brought it over to him and knelt down beside him.

"What is that?" He asked.

"Soap and water."

Von Krolock cringed and said, "I don't need it."

"But your wounds..."

"I am a vampire," he reminded her. "They won't get infected."

"Well, it'll ease the pain." Liliana pulled a rag from the soapy water and wrung it out a little. She carefully wiped away the dirt from his wrists then moved down to clean beneath the shackles around his ankles. "Lean forward," she instructed. He did as she said and gave a contented sigh when he felt her fingers gently caress over the areas of unbroken skin on his back. "He should be shot," she said barely above a whisper as she stared down at the welts and burns.

"I d-" Von Krolock hissed when Liliana poured a little bit of the water over his back. He waited for the sting to pass before he spoke again. "I deserve it."

"You've done nothing to any of them. They entered your home, brought you here and they are torturing you. You were of no direct threat to them. How can you say you deserve _this_?" She let some more water run over his wounds then blew on them gently to help take away some of the sting.

"I can't decide if you're naive or if you're just too nice," he muttered as she carefully dried his back with a fresh piece of cloth.

"I'll take that as a compliment," she replied. "It's certainly nicer than anything Cris has said to me." Von Krolock gave her a sideways glance; she was smiling but there was no happiness in her eyes.

"If you are so unhappy you should leave him," he said. He suppressed a sigh of disappointment when she pulled away from him and sat back against the wall.

"How can I?" She asked sadly. "This is a small village. If I left Cris I'd be forced to move but I have no money. And it's not as if I'd even be able to find another husband. I'm thirty-one, I can't have children, and I am absolutely of no use in the kitchen." They sat quietly for a few minutes listening to the rain as it hit the roof of the barn. "I should have married Ivan instead..." she said softly. Von Krolock sat up straight and looked at her.

"Ivan? He isn't much better than your husband."

"No, he's different than Cris and Peter." Feeling a chill pass through her, Liliana got up and pulled an old blanket from a shelf then sat down beside Von Krolock again. "When he is by himself he can be nice but when he's with them... I don't know..." She spread the blanket, pulling one half over herself and offering the other half to Von Krolock. "You must be cold." The blanket would do nothing to warm him and Von Krolock normally would have declined her offer but instead he took the blanket from her and covered himself with it. They grew quiet again and when, after a while, Liliana slid her hand under the blanket to take hold of Von Krolock's hand, he tensed slightly. "I'm going to find a way to get you out of here," she said sleepily. Moments later he felt her head rest on his shoulder as she drifted off to sleep.

Von Krolock looked down at her as she slept. Due to their position all he could see of her face was the side of one pale cheek, which was dusted with a few freckles. Her curly blonde hair was cut just below her ear and the entire length of her neck was visible to him. As he stared at it, the familiar feeling of hunger coursed through him along with an urge he hadn't felt in a long time. His fangs pushed against his lips as they slowly extended. He shifted his position slightly, being careful not to wake Liliana, and lowered his face toward her neck. She smelled so sweet it made his mouth water. It had been so long since he had bitten anyone. Thirty long years since he had bitten... He raised his head quickly; leaning back against the wall again he closed his eyes. He wouldn't do it again. He _couldn't_. Not to Liliana. Not after what he had done to Anneliese.

-.-.-.-.-

"Heinrich," Liliana said with a yawn. His head was resting heavily on hers and she couldn't move. "Heinrich?"

"Hmm?"

"You have to wake up and move so I can leave. Cris will be home soon." Von Krolock sat up so Liliana could move and watched as she put the blanket away and collected the bowl, bucket and lantern. "I hate leaving you here," she said softly as she stood in the doorway and looked at him.

"I will be fine," he assured her but it did nothing to relieve her worry.

"He's going to end up killing you."

"It's alright." Von Krolock offered a weak smile but it only made Liliana frown.

"No, it's not alright," she said.

"Go on, Lili. I don't want your husband to find you in here." Liliana smiled a little.

"No one ever called me that before." She looked down at the floor and blushed. "I like it."

"Go back to the house, Lili," he said gently. She gave him one last look then left the barn. No more than ten minutes after she got into the house and started preparing dinner she heard Cristian's car pull up. She watched through the window and her heart sank when she saw Cristian, Ivan and Peter at the water pump filling buckets, which they brought into the barn.

-.-.-.-.-

Peter and Ivan pushed the metal tub into the small room where they were holding Von Krolock. While they filled it with water from the buckets, Cristian noticed that Von Krolock was watching them. "I think it's about time you've had a bath," he said with a chuckle. Once the tub was full, he moved toward Von Krolock and when the vampire bared his fangs, he pulled a small cross from his pocket and held it out in front of him. Von Krolock ducked away from it and seconds later he felt himself being dragged by his arms toward the tub. Peter and Ivan placed him beside it then wrapped a rope tightly around him, binding his arms against his body.

"We know there were other vampires living with you," Cristian said as he knelt down beside him. "Where are they?"

"I've already said I am not going to tell you," Von Krolock growled. As soon as he said it, Cristian grabbed his hair and forced his head into the water. Unprepared for this, he breathed in some water and he struggled against Cristian's hand an in effort to escape as the water burned his lungs. He couldn't move his arms so he tried to push away with his legs but Peter and Ivan held him in place, leaning their full weight against him. Eventually Cristian finally pulled his head from the water and Von Krolock coughed violently, forcing the cold water out of his lungs.

"Tell me where they are!" Cristian demanded.

"I will never-" He was pushed under again and this time he swallowed a mouthful of water. His stomach tightened and when he was pulled from the water, he leaned to the side and vomited.

"Where... are... they?" Cristian whispered. His fingers were knotted in Von Krolock's long hair and when he tightened his grip, Von Krolock flinched.

"Fuck you..." Von Krolock plunged into the water a third time. He had managed to take a breath before he hit the water and as he was held in place, a few tiny bubbles escaped from his nose as he struggled to keep it in. He was held under for longer this time and just as his lungs began to ache he was pulled back up. The second he reached air, he exhaled and took another deep breath.

"If you tell us," Ivan said, now standing on the opposite side of the tub, "we will stop this right now."

"And then you'll kill me," Von Krolock added, his voice raspy as he gasped for more air.

"You're going to die either way, you bastard." Peter splashed a handful of water into Von Krolock's face. "Might as well get it over with, don't you think?" Von Krolock glared up at him. He tried to speak but before he could, Cristian pushed him under the water again but this time he pulled him back out immediately.

"Come on, Von Krolock," Ivan said. "Just tell us where they went. You can't say that you would rather continue living like this."

"What about you?" Von Krolock asked him. "Is this how you want to live? Being controlled by someone else, always being told what to do? What would your mother think?" Ivan leaned over the tub so that he was face to face with Von Krolock.

"Shut up!" he snapped. "You know nothing about me or my family."

"You should be more grateful to even be alive." Von Krolock spoke barely above a whisper as he stared into the other man's eyes. Ivan grabbed a handful of his hair and slammed his head against the side of the tub before pushing him under the water. He struggled for a moment; the water around him became cloudy and just as his vision began to fade he was pulled out of the water. He could feel something dripping down his forehead-something thicker than the water-and as it dripped into his eyes he realized he was bleeding.

Cristian let Von Krolock fall and he blacked out for a moment when the back of his head hit the cement floor. When he regained consciousness Cristian was straddling his waist and leaning over him, holding the silver razor. Von Krolock tried to move, ignoring the pain as the ropes bit into his skin, in an attempt to push Cristian off of him but Peter sat down on his legs and Ivan held his head down by grabbing his hair.

"You're quite feisty tonight," Cristian sneered. "It seems as though cats and rats are too good for you."

"Bring him a little frog tomorrow," Peter suggested and the three of them laughed.

"What should we do with him?" Cristian asked. "What can we do to make this vampire talk?"

"I will ne-" Von Krolock gasped when Cristian placed the side of the razor against his chest causing the skin beneath it to blister.

"Hey Cris, what about his hair?" Ivan held out a handful of Von Krolock's long hair.

"What are you, a fucking queer?" Cristian grabbed his hair and held the razor against it, close to Von Krolock's head. "We'll have to change that, won't we?" He pressed the blade against the strands of hair but before he could cut through, Von Krolock spat in his face. Clenching his fist around the razor's handle he swung at Von Krolock, leaving him with a blood nose. "You son of a bitch," he muttered as he wiped his face with his sleeve. "You'll pay for that!"

He brought the razor down to Von Krolock's chest again and Von Krolock closed his eyes against the pain. As the blade sliced through his skin the silver burned it causing tendrils of smoke to rise and flecks of blood to splatter from the wounds. He made numerous haphazard cuts, slicing at his chest blindly while he stared at Von Krolock's face, which was twisted in agony.

"I swear to God," Cristian muttered through clenched teeth as he continued to assault Von Krolock, cutting at his shoulders, neck and arms as well as his chest, "if you don't tell me where the other vampires are tonight I'm going to come back tomorrow and kill you slowly and painfully. First I will cut your fucking arms off!" He thrust the blade deep into Von Krolock's bicep and Von Krolock screamed. He struggled against the rope and chains that bound him but with the men on top of him, he couldn't move. "And then I'll cut your legs off!" He pulled the blade from the vampire's arm then brought it down hard into his thigh. He pulled the blade out then held it to Von Krolock's face. Bending over close to him he whispered, "You'll be begging me to kill you _long_ before I have finished."

Liliana stood on her back porch with tears streaming down her face. She could hear Von Krolock screaming all the way across their large yard and it frightened her to think of what they were doing to him. She glanced around at the neighbors' houses and saw that all of their shutters were closed for the evening. They could hear everything, she was sure of it, but they wouldn't do anything about it. She had learned quickly after marrying Cristian that no matter what the neighbors heard they simply ignored it, minding their own business. She knew if Von Krolock was to be saved, she had to do it herself but she was at a total loss as to what she could do.


	8. Chapter 8

"Liliana? Wake up..." Liliana gave a contented sigh as the fingers brushed her forehead. She smiled as thoughts of Von Krolock entered her sleepy mind but when she opened her eyes and saw her husband standing over her.

"What time is it?" She asked with a yawn. She sat up to get out of bed but he stopped her.

"It's early," he told her. "You don't need to get up. I just wanted to let you know that I won't be going into work today." Panic filled Liliana for a moment as she worried what would become of Von Krolock if she couldn't get into the barn to help him. "I have to run a number of errands, mostly in Timisoara so I won't be back until after dinner." Liliana bit her lip to keep from smiling at this. She sat up and slipped her feet into her slippers.

"Would you like a hot breakfast before you leave?" She asked him.

"Honey," Cristian said with a laugh, "I'd rather eat uncooked oats and drink milk straight from the cow than eat the garbage you call breakfast." Liliana frowned at the insult but inside she was too excited at the prospect of having such a long day ahead of her to help Von Krolock to care. She lay down again, pretending that she was going back to sleep but the second she heard the back door slam shut, she hurried to the window to watch him. He disappeared into the shed first and when he came back out her stomach tensed when she saw the ax he was carrying, which he put into the back of his car before getting in himself. The only reason he would be taking the ax with him was to have it sharpened and her stomach turned at the thought of what he planned on doing with it.

She watched as he drove away before quickly getting dressed. After one last glance out the window to be certain he hadn't returned then ran downstairs, outside and straight into the barn. "Heinrich!" She called out as she ran toward the back where the little room was. "Heinrich! I have great news! Cris-" She stopped short in the doorway and cried his name when she saw him lying unmoving on the floor. She hurried over and knelt down beside him.

"Oh my God..." she gasped when she saw what looked like hundreds of cuts and burns all over him. There was a deep wound in his arm and he was bound with heavy rope. "What have they done to you? Heinrich?" She gingerly placed a hand over his heart; it wasn't beating and she almost began to cry until she thought she felt his chest rise ever so slightly. She leaned over and when she felt a cool, shallow breath against her ear she let out a sob of relief. "Heinrich... Heinrich, please. Wake up!" Liliana cupped his cheeks with her hands and caressed his cheeks as she spoke to him and eventually his eyes finally opened. "Oh thank God! You're alive!" Liliana couldn't stop the few tears that fell from her eyes and landed on Von Krolock's cheeks.

"What..." Von Krolock blinked a few times to try and get his eyes to focus properly. "What happened?" He tried to sit up but a sharp pain spiked through his leg and he groaned.

"Don't move," she said gently as she worked to untie the knot in the rope. "I will be back soon to help you but you can't move alright?" He grunted in agreement and once she had freed him of the rope she quickly left the barn. "What the hell am I going to do?" She asked herself. She stood just outside the barn door and tried to calm herself in order to think clearly. _I have to clean him up_, she thought. _Soap, water and clean towels. _She went into the house and grabbed everything she needed. Just as she was about to leaveshe realized something else. "Food..." she said out loud. "What can I feed him...?" She desperately tried to figure out what she could get her hands on and just when she wondered if she would have to go into the nearby woods and hunt something down, she heard her neighbor's dog begin to bark.

She grabbed some raw bacon from the icebox and went outside toward the neighbor's house. "Ilie," she called softly, waving the bacon around in the air in front of her. "Come here, Ilie. Come here you little shit... I've got something for you." Moments later the dog, who was about the size of a small wolf, came running over to her. She fed him a piece of the bacon and scratched his head a little. "Would you like some more?" She held the rest of the bacon out and Ilie looked at it excitedly. "Come on, Ilie... Come and get it." Liliana walked slowly to the barn with all her supplies and Ilie following close behind. "Come on, boy," she coaxed, waving the bacon around so he could smell it.

Once they were inside, she tied Ilie to a post near the back of the barn then brought the rest of the stuff over to Von Krolock. For a moment she feared again that he had died until he opened his eyes a little and looked at her. "I won't lie," she said as she dipped a towel in the water and lathered it with soap. "This is going to hurt." She touched the wound on his arm and Von Krolock groaned. He tried to pull away but he was so weak he could barely move. "I'm sorry... I'm so sorry..." she said over and over again as she worked to clean the wound. "I'm almost finished." Taking a fresh, dry towel, she tore it in half and wrapped it around his arm as a makeshift bandage

"My leg," Von Krolock whispered. "They... my leg..." Liliana looked down to see a hole in his pants. She grimaced when she realized the fabric was saturated with blood. She thought she could slide her fingers through the tear to open it further but they were practically glued to his skin from all the blood. She tried to pull it away from his leg but when she did, Von Krolock's entire body tensed and he groaned in pain.

"Oh God, I'm so sorry," she said, quickly pulling her hands away. She looked down at him trying to figure out what else she could do. The wound was on his thigh so she couldn't roll the pant leg up from the cuff. She moved her eyes up to the clasp of his waistband. It was the only option she had but even under the circumstances, the thought of pulling his pants down made her blush. Instead, she picked up the bucket of soapy water and began to pour some of it over his thigh. Von Krolock squeezed his eyes shut and hissed when the water hit the wound.

Liliana glanced up at his face and noticed his fangs had grown. She wondered if the pain got to be too much for him if he would react by biting her. Then she wondered if that would really be such a bad thing... Realizing what she was thinking, she scolded herself for it and returned her focus to the task at hand. Once his leg was clean, she took the other half of the torn towel and wrapped it around his thigh as she had done with his arm. "I need to get these cuts clean," she told him. She lathered a fresh towel with soap but before she could touch him with it he grasped her wrist.

"I need to eat, Lili," he said weakly. "I can heal on my own I just need to eat something."

"Alright." Liliana dropped the towel in the bucket and pushed it out of the way. "Can you sit up?" Von Krolock forced himself up and rested back against the side of the tub that had been left there. Liliana left the room for a moment and Von Krolock's eyes grew wide when she brought the dog into the room.

"You're feeding me your dog?" Von Krolock tried to laugh but it came out as a cough instead.

"It's my neighbor's dog. He barks at all hours of the night," Liliana explained. "He's all yours." She led Ilie over to Von Krolock but the dog tried to pull away from them.

"Animals won't come near me. They can sense evil." Liliana forced Ilie onto Von Krolock's lap. He tried to hold the dog growling in place but the shackles around his wrists made it difficult so Liliana sat beside him and held the dog for him.

"Do it before he bites," she said.

"Are you sure you want to see this?"

"I will be fine," she assured him. "Just do it." Ilie made an attempt to bite her hand but Von Krolock grasped the scruff of his neck and leaning over, he bit down hard into the dog. Ilie yelped and tried to pull out of their grasp but they both held him tightly in place. Liliana had closed her eyes but when she felt the dog's muscles go limp she slowly opened them and watched with curiosity as Von Krolock drank from his neck.

She could hear the sucking sound though it was muffled slightly by the dog's fur and every so often when Von Krolock stopped to gasp for air, bits of blood splattered on his face from the force of his breath as he didn't pull away from the dog's neck. He clutched the dog tightly in his hands and he kept his eyes closed the entire time he ate. Liliana watched in amazement as some of the bruising and superficial wounds began to disappear before her eyes. A tiny bit of color even filled his cheeks and when he released the dog and opened his eyes they were so bright and refreshed it was as if she was face to face with someone other than the man she had known the past few days.

"I don't think you're evil," Liliana said when he opened his eyes. She grabbed one of the towels and wiped the bit of blood that coated his chin.

"That's only because you don't know what I've done." Von Krolock closed his eyes as he spoke, unable to look at her.

"You do what you need to do to survive."

"No..." Von Krolock sighed and bowed his head. "I've done worse than you think, Lili. Much worse." Liliana shifted closer to him and examined the smooth skin of his chest which had been covered with cuts moments before. Nearly half of the little wounds were gone.

"Did you enjoy it?" She asked.

"Did I enjoy what?"

"What you've done... What you say is so terrible. Did you enjoy doing it?" Von Krolock pictured Anneliese's dead body in his arms and for a moment he thought he was going to be sick.

"No," he rasped.

"Then I don't think you're evil," she said again and Von Krolock sighed.

"I wish it was that simple." When he finally looked up at her he saw the way she was staring at him. "What are you doing?"

"Your wounds..." she said in disbelief. "Some of them healed so fast, but the others..." She looked down at his leg and frowned when she saw the blood soaking through the towel.

"I need more blood. I don't suppose you have any other dogs lying around." Von Krolock chuckled but quickly went silent when he saw the serious look on Liliana's face.

"Take mine." Liliana couldn't believe she had said it; her stomach was in knots and her head was swimming yet at the same time she couldn't deny that the idea also excited her.

"Lili..."

"Drink from me, Heinrich." Liliana edged closer to him. "Let me heal you so you can get out of here."

"You don't know what you're saying, Lili."

"If you don't get out of here before Cris comes home he'll kill you." She climbed onto his lap being careful to avoid his injured thigh. Von Krolock's eyes rested on her neck and he was suddenly filled with the urge to bite her. Closing his eyes, he clenched his jaw and tried to resist. "This is the only way," she whispered. "Please, Heinrich. Do it."

"It will hurt," Von Krolock warned. He kept his eyes shut as she worked her way through the chains and shackles so that his arms were around her. "It will hurt more than you can imagine."

"Will it change me into a vampire?"

"If I said yes would that change your mind?" Von Krolock felt her warm hand cup one of his cheeks and when he opened his eyes to look at her, she smiled.

"No, it won't." She tilted her head to the side, giving him access to her neck. "Go on..." He stared at her neck longingly but as he leaned in to bite her images of what he had done to Anneliese flashed through his mind and he pulled away.

"I can't," he gasped. He tried to push Liliana away but she wrapped her arms around his neck and held him firmly. "I can't do it, Lili. It's been too long. I'm afraid..."

"What are you afraid of?" Von Krolock finally gave up trying to push her away from him and he looked her in the eye.

"I'm afraid I'll lose control and kill you."

"Is that what happened the last time? Is that why you stopped?" Von Krolock nodded. "You loved her, didn't you?" He didn't answer and Liliana pulled him into a hug. "I don't care what happens," she whispered. "There is nothing here for me. I'm willing to take the risk if it means I can help you get out of here." She shifted her position a little, placing her neck closer to his face and he sighed her name. "Please, Heinrich. Drink from me. Let me help you. Ple-"

Her words were replaced by a scream which quickly lessened into a gasp as a searing pain began to spread through her body. It slowly flowed from her neck down through her arms, down through her stomach and legs and all the way to her toes until she felt as if her entire body was in flames. Tears poured from her eyes and she clutched his shoulders, digging her nails into his flesh. Eventually she became light headed and while the pain continued, it began to feel farther away almost as if she was slowly being separated from her own body as he cradled her in his arms, combing his fingers through her hair as he drank from her neck.

It wasn't long before she became drowsy. She wondered if he would ever stop but part of her didn't care. She had just begun to drift off to sleep when she heard someone shout her name. Before she could respond she felt Von Krolock pull away and two strong hands grabbed her. When she opened her eyes she saw Von Krolock lying on the floor clutching the side of his head. She tried to reach out for him but she was quickly swept off the floor by Ivan who carried her out of the barn and into the house where he placed her on the sofa.

"Please don't hurt him," she whimpered. She grasped his arm but she was too weak to keep him from leaving. "I let him do it!" She cried. "Please don't hurt him, Ivan!" Ignoring her pleas, Ivan bolted out of the house and back to the barn, picking up a wooden post on his way to the back room.

"You won't get away with this!" He swung the post in the air and hit Von Krolock on his injured leg. "I'll kill you! I'll fucking kill you, you monster!" He continued to swing the post, hitting the vampire on his legs and back. Von Krolock never moved and when Ivan finally stopped his attack he heard the vampire laughing. Von Krolock pushed himself up so that he was sitting and Ivan stared in shock to find that the only marks left on his body were the fresh ones caused by the wooden post. "What the hell is so funny?" He snapped. He threatened Von Krolock with the post; the laughing stopped but the vampire remained smiling.

"You have your mother's temper," Von Krolock said. Ivan swung the post, hitting Von Krolock's shoulder but he barely even flinched.

"You leave my mother out of this!" He shouted. "You don't know her!"

"You look very much like her as well. It's been a long time since I last visited but the moment I saw you in the car I knew right away you were hers."

"You son of a bitch..." Ivan hit Von Krolock in the head. Von Krolock almost fell but he quickly caught himself. His ear was bleeding but he barely seemed to notice. Ivan grabbed one of the crosses from the wall and Von Krolock ducked away as Ivan ran toward him.

"I am the only reason you are even alive, Ivan!" Ivan froze at Von Krolock's words and stared down at him.

"Like hell you are!"

"You're adopted, aren't you?" Ivan was about to hit Von Krolock with the cross but he let his arm drop to his side.

"What? How... how did you know? Peter said something, didn't he? That drunken little-"

"Forty-two years ago," Von Krolock interrupted, "I watched as your mother was forced to abandon you. She left you in a basket at the edge of the woods that surround my castle." Ivan shook his head slowly.

"No. No, that's not true," he said. "I was left on a doorstep of-"

"It was I who placed you on that doorstep." Von Krolock grinned as Ivan's face grew pale.

"You're lying..."

"Anton and Stela. Those are your adopted parents, are they not?"

"You're lying," Ivan said again. "Someone could have told you. Liliana told you, didn't she?"

"You have no brothers or sisters. You grew up on a farm with mostly chickens and cows."

"No..."

"You had one horse though, didn't you? And when you were seven years old your father let you take a ride on this horse." Von Krolock remained unmoving as he sat on the floor, watching as Ivan began to pace slowly back and forth.

"Shut up," he muttered. "Just shut up. You can't know all this..."

"But you fell off the horse," Von Krolock continued, "and you were so scared of it that your father was forced to sell it."

"Stop this right now," Ivan hissed as he clenched his fingers tightly around the cross.

"Are you still self conscious about the birthmark on your back, Ivan?" Ivan stared at Von Krolock with wide eyes, unable to respond. "It bothered you as a child. I am just wondering if it still-"

"Enough!" Ivan threw the cross at Von Krolock and Von Krolock moved to the side to avoid it.

"Your mother would be horrified to see what has become of you."

"How would you know? You said you saw her-"

"I loved her," Von Krolock said. Ivan's face twisted in disgust.

"Are you trying to tell me you're my father?"

"By the time I met her you were twelve." Ivan sighed with relief. "I don't think you will be any happier to find out who your father really is."

"What is that supposed to mean?" Ivan slowly edged closer to the wall to keep the crosses within reach.

"He was an older man," Von Krolock said, keeping a careful watch on Ivan. "He raped your mother when she was just a child." Ivan lowered his eyes to the floor as he tried to take in everything Von Krolock was telling him.

"What happened to him?" He asked softly.

"He died." Ivan looked up at the vampire again; he was about to ask him how his father had died but when he saw the smile on Von Krolock's face he knew instantly.

"Where is my mother? She was young, she should still be alive today. Where is she? What is her name? Where-"

"She's dead, too." This time it was Von Krolock who looked away.

"What...?" Ivan's voice came out as a whimper. Von Krolock closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

"I loved Anneliese," he whispered. "I barely even knew her, yet I loved her very much."

"What are you saying, Von Krolock?" Ivan pulled another cross from the wall. "What happened to my mother?"

"I never meant to hurt her but I couldn't bear to see her leave. I loved her so-" Ivan jumped on Von Krolock, knocking him over onto the floor and when he pressed the cross to his chest, Von Krolock screamed.

"I'll fucking kill you for this!" Ivan began to hit Von Krolock repeatedly as he screamed at him, beating him on the head and chest with the cross. He lost control of himself and by the time he finally stopped he stared down in shock at what he had done. Von Krolock was covered in burns and was bleeding profusely from his nose and ears. Reaching over, he grabbed the post he had brought with him and placed the pointed end over Von Krolock's heart. He gripped the post tightly in both hands and raised it a few inches.

"What are you waiting for?" Von Krolock asked sadly when Ivan didn't move. "You want to kill me. Go ahead and do it." Ivan glared at him.

"I don't need your blood on my hands." Ivan's voice was completely emotionless as he tossed the post aside. "You're not worth it. Cris will deal with you when he returns tonight." Without another word Ivan left.


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: Sorry for the delay. It's been a rather busy few weeks, but here is the final chapter.

* * *

><p>Liliana opened her eyes and looked around. At first she couldn't recall how she had gotten into the living room but when she tried to move, her entire body began to ache and she remembered what had happened. Ignoring the pain, she forced herself to her feet and stumbled through the house, out the back door and across the yard and into the barn. She called out for Von Krolock as she ran toward the back and when she saw him beaten and bloody she rushed over to him.<p>

"I thought he killed you," she cried when he opened his eyes. She tried to hug him but Von Krolock pushed her away gently.

"Are you alright?" He asked as he touched her neck where he had bitten her.

"Yes, I'm fine. I'm just so glad you're alive!" She tried to hug him again but he stopped her again.

"I can't get out, Lili," he said. "Not now. Not like this." His voice wavered as he struggled to hold back his tears. "I can't even sit up..."

"Take more of my blood!" Liliana leaned over him but he turned his face away.

"I can't, Lili. It's too soon."

"Then I will go get help." She grabbed the blanket they had shared before and put it under his head to try and give him some comfort. "Tell me where your family is," she said gently. "I will bring them here." Von Krolock stared at her wearily. "Please trust me, Heinrich... Tell me where they are."

-.-.-.-.-

"Are you sure this is the place, Miss?" The taxi driver asked as they pulled up in front of what looked like an abandoned building. They had driven a ways out of the village and it seemed as though they were in the middle of nowhere.

"Yes, this is it." Liliana stared at the building. It was exactly as Von Krolock had described. "Please wait here. I shouldn't be too long."

"It's your money, Miss," the man said as she climbed out of the car. She walked up to the front door and gave it a push. Even though Von Krolock had told her it would be, she was surprised that it opened. All the windows were boarded but a few cracks in the wood let in just enough light for her to see where she was going as she walked through the empty room but when she reached the door that led to the cellar, she switched her flashlight on.

Liliana slowly descended the stairs unsure of what would be waiting for her at the bottom. When she finally reached the last step she shined her flashing around to see it had been turned into a living space with a few pieces of old furniture but off to one side she saw the two coffins. Nervously she walked toward them. She couldn't imagine it was wise to wake a vampire but she had no choice. Night was fast approaching and Cristian would be home soon. Once she was beside the coffins she looked from one to the other trying to decide which one belonged to Von Krolock's son.

Settling on the right one, she reached for the lid but when it shot open seemingly by itself she jumped back with a scream. She saw something fly out of it and the next thing she knew she was pinned on her back on the floor with a mass of blonde hair hanging in her face. "What are you doing here?" A voice hissed through the platinum locks. "Speak quick before I kill you!" A soft chuckle followed and even in her fear Liliana was reminded of Von Krolock.

"It's about your father," she replied in a shaky voice, unable to hide her fear. The vampire hissed and lowered his head closer to hers.

"What do you know of my father?" He growled. "What have you done with him?"

"I've done nothing to him," she whimpered. "It's my husband. He has your father locked up." The vampire's hands tightened around Liliana's wrists. "I've been trying to help him but my husband will be home soon and he's going to kill him!" She spat out quickly in a single breath. It felt like an eternity to Liliana but after a few moments the vampire finally released her and sat up. He pushed his hair away from his face and looked at her.

"You're lying," he said flatly.

"No!"

"This is a trap, isn't it? You don't know my father."

"No, I swear it's not!" Liliana sat up and quickly grabbed her flashlight, which she had dropped in the fall. "He told me you're his son Herbert and in there," she pointed to the closed coffin, "is your Aunt Breda." Herbert began to crawl slowly toward her; she pulled her knees to her chest but she refused to back away. "Please, you have to go to him. He's badly hurt, Cris will be home soon and there's nothing else I can do."

"You expect me to believe that you've been helping him?" He leaned forward and bared his fangs slightly.

Liliana shined the flashlight on her neck and said, "I let him bite me." Herbert hung his head and rubbed his eyes.

"Not again," he muttered. Liliana wanted to ask what he meant but she decided it was best not to.

Instead, she said to him, "He needs you, Herbert. You have to go to him."

"This is all my fault. I never should have left," he sighed. "Where is he?" Liliana told him where Von Krolock was being held. "Go home," he told her. "I will leave here as soon as the sun sets." Liliana got up and ran to the steps.

"Please hurry!" She begged but when she turned around, Herbert was nowhere to be seen and the lid on his coffin was shut once again.

-.-.-.-.-

"Cris? You here?" Peter stumbled through the barn, knocking things over as he did so. "Cris? Ivan? You left the door open you stupid bastards!" He slowly made his way into the back room where a light was glowing. "Where the hell are- Well! What do we have here?" Peter grinned at Von Krolock who was lying on the floor with the blanket. "Someone's been-_hic_-helping you?" He took a drink from his whiskey bottle and took a faltering step forward. "You're going to die tonight," he chuckled. "Do you know that? Cris is going to kill you and it won't be pretty. You're going to die! You're going to die!" He began chanting this over and over as he stumbled around in a drunken dance.

"You're going to- shit!" Peter tripped and dropped his whiskey on the floor, breaking the bottle. "God damn it..." He bent over slowly, in an effort to keep from falling over, to inspect the damage. "Son of a bitch," he sighed. Just then he spotted the wooden post lying on the floor. He smiled and picked it up. "I don't see why I can't have a little fun myself first," he said. He moved a little closer to Von Krolock and poked him with the sharp end of the post. Von Krolock groaned but he didn't move. "You're going to die," he chuckled and he began to sing again. "You're going to diii-iie, you're going to diii-iie!" With each word Peter either poked or hit Von Krolock with the post. The vampire glared at him but he never moved. "You're going to diii-iie! You're going to-"

Peter never even heard Liliana creep up behind him. He felt her hands against his back but by then it was too late. She gave him a hard shove; he fell forward and the instant he was within his reach, Von Krolock grabbed him. His long nails dug deep into the soft skin of his belly as he pulled him close and he sunk his fangs into his neck. Unable to look away, Liliana stared in morbid fascination as Von Krolock bit down repeatedly into Peter's neck until she heard a sickening crunch when he crushed his throat.

"You don't need to see this!" A voice said and Liliana was pulled out of the small room and pushed to the side. She tried to protest but before she could say anything, a tall figure moved into the room and shut the door behind him. She didn't know how long she waited for something to happen. She listened through the door but heard nothing until it was opened again and Herbert came out with his father leaning heavily against him. Some of his burns had been healed but he was still clearly weak and feeling unwell. Neither of them said a word and she followed them out of the barn.

"Wait!" She said when she realized they were preparing to leave. She hurried toward them and stood before Von Krolock. "Take me with you." Herbert tried to pull Von Krolock toward a large car that was just pulling up in front of the house but Von Krolock refused to move.

"No, Father. You can't do this again..." Herbert tried again to force his father to move but Von Krolock remained firmly in his place.

"It's different this time," Von Krolock told him. His vision suddenly blurred and he blinked his eyes a few times before he could see Liliana clearly again

"I want to go with you, Heinrich."

"Are you..." Von Krolock's body began to tremble; he leaned heavy against his son and Herbert tightened his arm around him.

"We have to leave right now," Herbert whispered to his father. "You need a proper feeding and to lay down." He pulled Von Krolock toward the car and after the first few steps when the weight against him lessened, he looked over to see Liliana walking with them. Von Krolock had placed his other arm over her shoulders and she was helping to support him as they walked to the car.

"Are you sure you want to come with us?" Von Krolock asked softly. His voice slurred as he became drowsy. They helped him into the back seat where a woman, whom Liliana assumed had to be Breda, sat waiting. "You have to be sure, Lili." Liliana got into the car and as soon as she sat beside him, Von Krolock leaned over and rested his head in her lap. "I need you to be sure," he mumbled, half asleep. Liliana gently combed her fingers through his dirty hair and smiled down at him.

"I am sure, Heinrich," she said. "I'm very sure." They rode quietly for a short while. Curtains had been placed over the windows so Liliana kept her eyes on Von Krolock as he slept, trying to ignore the fact that the other two vampires were staring at her. "Where are we going?" She eventually asked after the silence had become too uncomfortable for her. Herbert opened his mouth to speak but Von Krolock cut him off.

"Home," he said sleepily. His eyes were still closed and he made no sign of getting up.

"We can't go home, Father. That is the first place her husband will come looking for us," Herbert reminded him. "We have to go where Breda and I were staying."

"No!" Liliana jumped when Von Krolock yelled but when she looked down at him again he still looked as if he was sleeping peacefully. "We are going _home_."

-.-.-.-.-

"Ivan! I know you're home!" Cristian pounded on the door until Ivan finally opened it.

"Jesus Christ, Cris," Ivan muttered. "What the hell do you want?"

"It's past noon! What the fuck are you doing asleep? Move aside, let me in." Cristian tried to push his way into Ivan's home but Ivan refused to budge.

"I had a long night. Why are you here?"

"At least one other vampire came for Von Krolock a few nights ago. I was just coming down the street when I saw them leave. Come on Ivan, let me in." Cristian shifted his weight impatiently from one foot to the other.

"So? Good riddance, I say. If that is all I'll be going back to bed now." Ivan tried to shut the door but Cristian put his hand against it to stop him.

"They took Liliana," Cristian said. "I saw them force her into the car and I followed them up to the castle. I've been watching the place for the past few days. I'm going to go back there now to get her back but I need your help."

"Me? Why me?"

"There are two other vampires there. I can't do this on my own but with your help I know we can get her back home where she belongs." Cristian pushed against the door but Ivan kept his weight on it so it wouldn't open any further.

"Cris... you saw what he did to Peter didn't you? Why would you think Liliana is even still alive?"

"If they wanted to kill her they would have done it at the house. They took her because they want me to go after them! Come on, Ivan... you have to help me out here! Let's go kill those vampires once and for all!" Ivan stared worriedly at Cristian. His clothes and hair were completely disheveled and he smelled as if he hadn't bathed in days.

"No. Do it yourself." Without another word, Ivan forced the door shut and locked it. He went back to bed and when he sat down on it, he picked up the letter he had placed on the bedside table and read it over again. He had received the invitation to the castle the morning after Von Krolock had escaped and somehow he had managed to find the courage to go there the following night as the letter had requested of him. When he had arrived he hadn't seen anyone but he knew they were there; he could feel their stares.

Just as the letter had stated there was a pine box in the middle of the foyer. He had opened the lid just enough to see a lock of brown hair then quickly let it fall shut, not wanting to see what was left of his mother. He dragged the simple coffin outside and hoisted it into the bed of the truck he had borrowed and drove away as fast as he could, vowing to never go back there as long as he lived.

-.-.-.-.-

Cristian parked near the castle and after climbing out of the car, he grabbed the ax that had been sitting in the back seat for days. He stormed toward the castle and with a yell he swung the ax at the door. The freshly sharpened blade stuck into the thick wood and seconds later the door was opened by an elderly man. He stepped aside and motioned for Cristian to enter. "They have been expecting you, Sir," the man said to him. Cristian pulled his ax from the door and as soon as he went inside, the man closed the door behind him and disappeared into another room.

The foyer was dark for it being in the middle of the day as drapes had been placed over the stained glass windows to keep any light from entering, though a few lit candles gave off enough light for Cristian to tell that the place had been cleaned since he last saw it. He slowly turned in a circle to take in his surroundings, holding the ax tightly, prepared to swing at anything that came toward him.

"How lovely it is to see you again, Cristian!" A voice thundered through the room and Cristian spun around to see Von Krolock standing at the top of the stairs.

"Where is my wife?" He growled through gritted teeth. His fingers gripped the ax handle so tightly his knuckles had turned white. "I swear to God if you've killed her I'll-"

"You will what? Trick me into squeezing myself into a bottle which you will toss into a fire?" Von Krolock chuckled. "Or better yet, maybe you'll steal my sock. Which one was it again?"

"It's the left one." Cristian looked to his right to see Herbert and Breda standing in one of the doorways that led to another room.

"Oh yes, the left sock!" Von Krolock laughed at the confused look on Cristian's face. "Yes Cristian, I have read up on all the folklore you humans have written about vampires. I find it all rather entertaining!"

"Where is she?" Cristian shouted. Von Krolock gave him a wide grin.

"Where is who?"

"You son of a bitch!" Cristian ran toward the stairs but came to a halt when he heard Liliana's voice behind him.

"Cris, don't!" He turned around to see her standing in the middle of the room.

"Liliana?" His wife smiled and reached out for him. He took a hesitant step toward her but then looked at Herbert and back up at Von Krolock.

"Go on, Cristian," Von Krolock said. "Go to your wife."

"I'm taking her home where she belongs!" Cristian yelled at them as he hurried over toward Liliana. Dropping the ax on the floor, he pulled her into his arms. "I'm going to kill that bastard," he whispered to her. "I'll make him regret taking what belongs to me."

"I told them you would come for me," she whispered back. "I knew you would come. I just knew it..." Cristian tried to pull away to look at her but she refused to let go of him.

"Liliana, let go of me..." Cristian tried again to pull himself out of her arms but it only made her tighten her grip around him.

"Yes," she sighed. A chill passed through Cristian when he felt her breath against his neck. "I knew you would come!" Without any warning, Liliana bit into Cristian's neck and he screamed. He struggled against her but her arms tightened around him like an iron vise. They sank to the floor and he screamed over and over again as she worked to drain the blood from his body but the only ones that could hear him were Von Krolock, Herbert and Breda who were now surrounding them and looking down at them.

"You see, Herbert?" Von Krolock whispered to his son while they watched as Liliana killed her husband. "I told you it was different this time.


End file.
